DUBAI: The Muslim holy month of Ramadan, is supposed to be dedicated to self-reflection, prayers and abstinence from vacuous distractions and temptations including sex but social media usage peaks during Ramadan in Muslim countries.
According to new stats, time spent by people in the Middle East and North Africa on Facebook and YouTube during Ramadan spikes by 58 million more hours. Ramadan brings a welcome boost of business in the region in particular for Facebook, which also owns Instagram, and Google, which owns YouTube.
“Consumption and time spent on our platforms do indeed increase….The more that they engage on our platforms, the more advertisers want to be able to reach those that are engaging. That’s what drives our revenue,” Facebook’s managing director for the Middle East and North Africa Ramez Shehadi said, as cited by Associated Press.
According to a report by the Associated Press (AP), people watch more YouTube videos, everything from beauty tips and recipes to sports, favorite TV dramas and soap operas during Ramadan, more than any other time of the year.
Google, which owns the video platform YouTube is reportedly another tech tycoon which enjoys a boost during Ramadan.
The numbers for TV dramas and soap operas increases by 151 percent, 22 percent increase in viewership for sports videos and travel clips in Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Egypt by 30% spike. People also spend 27% more time watching religious videos on YouTube.
During Ramadan, fasting from dawn until sunset is obligatory for all Muslims, except those who are travelling, ill, elderly, diabetic, pregnant, breastfeeding. But this time of moderation can appear as a goldmine for social media platforms and advertisers to generate possibly bigger revenues by craving consumer’s attention.